Chapter 193: Status (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 193: Status (4)
“Wh-what?”
Paloel looked bewildered by Rim’s reaction.
In fact, he couldn't help but be bewildered. No matter how high her standing within the secret society Pagade was, her status and power did not exceed those of the Council of Elders.
In other words, Rim speaking to Paloel so informally was a blatant overstepping of her bounds.
Paloel’s brow furrowed deeply, but...
“…….”
He didn't dare utter another word.
‘This girl is serious.’
The killing intent saturating the air and her fierce aura made it clear. If he opened his mouth again—
‘Paloel, I will hurt you.’
That was the message. Paloel found himself unable to speak, yet he couldn't understand Rim’s behavior at all. Just a few days ago, she clearly hadn't liked that human. Why had her attitude changed so drastically?
After much thought, Paloel could only reach one conclusion. It was the only one that made sense.
‘Could it be... that human really is a god—?’
Unless the Marquis Palatio, who had come to Greinif, was truly a god, Rim’s sudden change of heart was inexplicable.
Just then.
“Let me make this clear.”
“……”
“From this moment on, I will consider any attack on Marquis Palatio as an attack on me.”
Leaving that warning behind, Rim walked past him with an air of composure. Paloel could only stare at her retreating back in silence.
* * *
Meanwhile, at that same moment.
“……And that is the situation.”
“I see. Is that so?”
Alon was in a private meeting with Magrina, the Elf Queen. After explaining the circumstances and observing her reaction, he moved on to the next topic.
“Anyway, there are a few things I’d like to ask you regarding that. May I?”
“By all means. I will answer anything I know.”
Encouraged by her friendly smile, Alon asked his first question.
“Do you know when those Greed—no, the Ash Scatterers down there first appeared?”
“I can’t give you an exact answer to that. Even we elves don't know the full details.”
“……Is that so?”
“However, if I were to give a rough estimate…… it was probably about six or seven hundred years ago.”
“Six or seven hundred years?”
“Yes. That was around the time I first heard stories about them.”
Alon tilted his head instinctively.
‘Six or seven hundred years... that’s a bit ambiguous to link directly to Greed.’
As far as Alon knew, the Mother of Greed appeared alongside the Sin of Greed. Furthermore, she only manifested when the Sin of Greed was nearby.
The Five Great Sins, including the Sin of Greed, never remained idle once they descended. It was as if their sole purpose was to exterminate the entire population of the continent, moving toward any place with life to sow death.
In other words, if the Sin of Greed had truly appeared, the world would have already been in an uproar.
‘If I assume the Sin of Greed appeared and died six or seven hundred years ago, and only the Mother of Greed survived—it’s not entirely lacking in probability.’
Alon pondered this and asked a follow-up question.
“……Was there an awakening of the Sin of Greed around that time?”
“Hmm—I’m not sure. I don’t believe there was anything of the sort.”
Her answer was uncertain.
“I see.”
Alon decided to set his hypothesis aside and move on. He judged that he wouldn't gain any more information by pressing further.
‘Since it’s something from that far back, it might be recorded in ancient texts. I should look into it later.’
Then, a thought suddenly struck him. Alon looked at Queen Magrina’s face anew.
‘……Just how old is she?’
It wasn't an important issue right now, but the number of years she mentioned didn't match her youthful beauty at all, sparking his curiosity.
‘Mentioning seven hundred years ago so casually means she was alive back then. That would make this elf’s age at least—’
As Alon’s thoughts naturally drifted in that direction...
“Oh—Marquis? Are you perhaps having some very impolite thoughts?”
Her voice snapped him back to reality. The Queen was smiling. However, unlike her upturned lips, her eyes weren't smiling at all.
“No, it’s nothing like that.”
He answered faster than usual.
“Then please, continue with your questions.”
“Right.”
Fortunately, the situation passed quietly.
“Do you know about the mirror beneath the roots?”
“A mirror?”
“Yes, a circular, full-length mirror.”
Alon told her about the strange experience he’d had.
“Hmm, first of all, the object you saw is definitely an artifact. However—”
She paused for a moment and gently shook her head.
“I don’t actually know what its effect is.”
“You don’t know the effect?”
“Yes. Normally, nothing is reflected in that mirror. That’s why I assumed it was an artifact.”
“……How long has that mirror been there?”
Queen Magrina thought for a moment before answering.
“I don’t know when it first appeared. It was just there from the first time I visited that place.”
“Then there’s no way to know who put it there either.”
“Regrettably, that is the case.”
This, too, was shrouded in mystery... Alon let out a short hum and moved to his next question.
“Do you know what this is?”
What he held out was the golden fruit he had obtained from deep within the roots. As soon as the Queen saw it...
“……! This…… how did you obtain this?”
She asked back, looking quite surprised. Alon briefly explained the situation.
A moment later.
“I see. So that’s what happened.”
Magrina nodded as if she understood something. She submerged herself in a sea of thought for a while, and when she finally resurfaced, she gave Alon an answer.
“What you are holding, Marquis, is the Fruit of the World Tree.”
“The Fruit of the World Tree?”
“Yes.”
“……What effect does it have if consumed?”
Magrina’s answer came instantly.
“It is quite significant. It is the fruit of the World Tree, after all.”
“And that is?”
“You will likely gain mana beyond your imagination.”
“……Mana beyond imagination?”
“Yes. It contains the mana of the World Tree itself. Simply consuming it will cause your mana to overflow.”
“Oh.”
A faint look of admiration appeared on Alon’s face. If what Magrina said was true, this fruit was the key to solving his innate mana depletion.
However.
“But you should be somewhat careful before consuming it.”
Things in life rarely went so smoothly.
“Are there side effects?”
“It’s not so much a side effect as…… the effect being too powerful?”
The effect being too powerful was the problem?
“Yes. If you eat it incorrectly, your body might explode.”
“……Is that true?”
“It only increases your mana; it doesn't improve your body to be able to handle such a massive amount of power.”
Alon fell silent. He realized the golden fruit before him was a deceptive prize—beautiful on the outside but potentially fatal.
Still.
‘Improving the body, huh.’
He had no intention of giving up on this opportunity. Deciding to research ways to improve his constitution later, Alon put the fruit away.
“Have you asked everything you were curious about?”
Just as the meeting was about to end, Alon remembered one last question that had been weighing on his mind.
“Could I ask one last thing?”
“Of course.”
Despite the many questions he had already asked, Magrina smiled as if it were no trouble at all. Alon hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.
“……Can you tell me everything you know about the Primordial Elf?”
In the end, he asked. Since she mistook him for the Primordial Elf, this question was bound to sound incredibly strange.
But he couldn't leave without hearing anything about the Primordial Elf after coming all this way. He decided it was worth the risk.
Contrary to his expressionless face, Alon was quite tense inwardly as he waited for Magrina’s response.
“About the Primordial Elf…… you say?”
“Yes.”
After a moment, Magrina spoke.
“Ah—yes, yes. I’ll tell you. That’s not difficult at all.”
She wore a smile that seemed to say, ‘Ah, I see, that’s how it is.’ Just like the first time Alon had denied being the Primordial Elf.
“Hmm—where should I start?”
“I’d like you to tell me everything you know.”
Since he needed to gather as much information as possible, Alon made a broad request. Magrina began to sift through her memories as if it were a fun game.
“First of all—he was a Magus.”
“I see.”
“He also had a daughter.”
“……He had a daughter?”
“Yes.”
That was unexpected information.
‘I suppose he was married.’
Alon gave a light shrug.
“Anything else?”
“He was very intelligent. And while he seemed blunt on the outside, he was a warm-hearted person.”
Starting from there, Magrina spent quite some time sharing nostalgic memories. After listening quietly to her stories, Alon spoke.
“I think that should be enough.”
“Is that so?”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Leaving behind a slightly disappointed Magrina, Alon returned to his quarters.
* * *
Silli, the second child of the Macallian family.
Recently, she had become quite a celebrity. Of course, Silli had always been well-known. Her older brother was Deus Macallian, the First Sword of Calliban, and he was a self-proclaimed ‘doting brother’ who cherished his younger sister immensely.
However, the reason Silli had become famous recently was because of her magic.
Generally, mages weren't held in high regard in Calliban. Nevertheless, the fact that she had reached the 2nd Tier in less than two years of learning magic was a testament to her genius. She had become a celebrity in the capital in her own right.
Today, she had stopped by Deus’s office to tell him something.
“Brother?”
“What is it?”
There, she encountered her sibling, who was holding a pair of binoculars and doing something strange—no, looking at something.
“……What are you doing, Brother?”
“What am I doing—ah, are you talking about this?”
“Yes.”
When Silli nodded, Deus gave a confident smile and handed the binoculars to his sister.
“Take a look.”
“……?”
With a puzzled expression, she took the binoculars and adjusted the focus to her eyes.
“This is—?”
She couldn't help but gasp in admiration at the vast view of a territory that came into sight. Then, Deus’s bright voice sounded from beside her.
“It’s the Marquis’s territory.”
“……What? By Marquis, do you mean—Marquis Palatio’s?”
“Yes. Doesn't it come through clearly?”
“Uh—it does, but…… how is this possible?”
When Silli asked with a confused face, Deus squared his shoulders proudly.
“I asked a mage to cast a sharing spell on a gem brought from the Labyrinth. Normally, this distance would be impossible, but artifacts from the Labyrinth have remarkably high utility.”
Deus let out a hearty laugh.
“……Uh, I get that, but why go through all this trouble……?”
“Why? To protect the Marquis, of course.”
“The Marquis?”
“Yes. There might be groups targeting him, so I’ve been standing guard like this 24 hours a day.”
Heh heh heh.
Deus’s face was full of pride, clearly satisfied with himself. However, Silli was...
……Guard duty? This is……?
“So that I can immediately deal with any lawless scoundrels who might target the Marquis.”
The more she heard, the more she felt like she was falling into a labyrinth of her own.
‘Isn't this…… even more illegal?’
“No one will dare lay a finger on the Marquis, haha—!”
It was a strange evening…….